Dating Problems
by Erebus Kioku
Summary: Karin sends an anonymous love letter to Itsuki asking her to meet her on the roof after school. Fuu is unimpressed.
1. Chapter 1

Part one of a 3-4 chapter long Karin/Itsuki fic, guest starring absurdly overprotective Fuu.

* * *

"No, absolutely not! I won't stand for it!"

"I don't really think that you can stop her though, Fuu-senpai."

"Onee-chan, please stop fussing. It's not like it says something weird or anything."

"It's weird by definition! Who even sends love letters anymore anyway? Guys who don't even have the spine to confess in person, that's who! It's probably some freak who girls run away from if he actually talks to them because he's just that creepy!"

Itsuki sighed again. Earlier that day she had received her first ever love letter and in her excitement she had made the mistake of mentioning it in front of her sister. She should have known better really given how ridiculously overprotective she'd been after everything that had happened. Fuu had instantly fallen into an overprotective rage and had declared that she wasn't even allowed to meet whoever the sender was. It seemed that she perceived anyone who showed any interest in Itsuki as a potential serial killer or some such. She had been planning on meeting whoever it was after school on the roof like the letter had said, but at this rate she might not even be allowed out of the house for the next month.

Said love letter was short and to the point- 'Dear Inubouzaki Itsuki, I really like you. I'll be on the school roof at six o'clock tonight. If you want to know who I am be there, if you don't I won't ask you again.'

"Just look at this shoddy excuse for a love letter! Who writes like that? It's appalling! He must have put no effort into it whatsoever! He's probably a drug dealer or something!"

"Fuu, seriously, just what kind of people do you think go to our school anyway? This isn't exactly a hotbed of crime and depravity you know? A-At any rate, I think its fine. It gets the message across perfectly well, and it's more romantic when someone says what they're feeling in person, right?"

Karin looked particularly bewildered by Fuu's overreaction, probably because she hadn't known her for as long as the others.

"What if it's from someone great, like, I don't know, someone good looking, rich and with a great personality?"

"If he was that great, then he wouldn't have had to send a letter! Either he's too spineless to confess or there's something freaky about him, either way he's definitely no good!"

"But what if you're wrong and you're trying to stop Itsuki from meeting someone who could make her happy?" said Yuna.

"She's right, Fuu-senpai," Togo chimed in. "Whoever it is at least deserves a response if they are serious, and even if it turns out that it's someone undesirable, it really is Itsuki's decision to make."

Itsuki shot them a look of gratitude. As much as she loved Fuu, the older girl could be difficult to deal with sometimes.

"Besides," Yuna continued, "If you're saying that whoever it is must be a creep, aren't you basically saying that there's something wrong with Itsuki and she can only attract creeps? That's a terrible thing to say about your own sister!"

"D-don't try and turn this around on me like that! None of you have younger siblings, so you wouldn't understand! It's my job to make sure she's protected from the outside world for as long as possible!"

"Wow, why don't you just lock her up in a tower and be done with it." Karin sneered.

"That's actually really patronising, Onee-chan." Itsuki frowned at Fuu.

'_She's moving past difficult straight into hysterical. I wonder if some creepy guy confessed to her or something?_'

"Look, if you're that worried then why don't you wait near the roof and make sure that nothing untoward happens?" Togo suggested. "Of course you'd have to make sure that you weren't seen, or else you would seriously embarrass yourself and Itsuki by proxy."

"I guess that could work…." Fuu said sullenly, sensing that she was losing the argument.

"Er, I don't think that's a good idea," said Karin, "I mean, if whoever it is sees her sister hanging around spying on them it could be seriously off putting, right?"

She looked strangely worried, thought Itsuki. She found herself hoping that there was a particular reason behind her reaction, before she pushed the thought from her mind, blushing slightly.

"If he's put off by something like that then it just proves how worthless he is! Come on Itsuki, let's go right now!"

"What? But there's still 40 minutes to go until it's time…"

"I need time to get into position! Let's go, no time to lose!" She grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the club room.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Itsuki was very bored. Fuu had climbed on top of the storage room's roof and was glaring at the roof door like she expected a Vertex to float through it. The others had excused themselves, giving her sympathetic looks as they left, and now she had to wait for another 30 minutes.

Sighing yet again-it was incredible how often she found herself doing that when her sister was involved-she pulled out her phone to see if there was anything to kill the time with. To her surprise, and slight disappointment, she had a message from Karin waiting for her.

'_Hey Itsuki, how're you holding up with that idiot? Try not to keep checking the time, it only makes it worse :-)_ '

'_Looks like it wasn't from her after all, not that that's surprising though. I thought she would still be on her way home…I hope she isn't texting and trying to walk at the same time._'

Karin had made impressive progress with her rehabilitation, but she was still on crutches. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, she had passed on the schools offer to let her take a car to and from home.

'_Maybe she was tired and took a car after all._'

'_It's boring, but it's not for that long. Onee-chan is lying on the storage shed roof glaring at the door. It's actually kind of funny, but I hope that he doesn't see her._'

She sent the message, not really expecting to hear back from the other girl, but to her surprise she received another message less than a minute later.

'_lol that's just embarrassing. Take a picture so everyone can laugh at her at the next club meeting._'

Itsuki hesitated. Sure Fuu was behaving ridiculously, but she was her sister…

Unfortunately for Fuu, she sealed her own fate at that moment by noticing the phone.

"Itsuki, what is that!?"

"…It's a phone, Onee-chan."

"D-Don't you be sarcastic at me! Is someone texting you? Is it a boy!?"

She scuttled forward, glaring at the phone like it had insulted her cooking. She was dangerously close to the edge, but she didn't seem to notice.

Itsuki resisted the urge to sigh again, worrying that she'd take in too much oxygen and hyperventilate.

"No, it's Karin. She wanted to know how it was going."

"Hmph! Well that's fine then, I guess." Fuu scowled. She tried to move back onto the roof, but she had managed to end up with her arms and upper body hanging over the edge and had to squirm her way back up awkwardly over the next minute. Itsuki, finally having become annoyed, surreptitiously filmed her the whole time.

'_I got her._'

'_Nice, did she notice?_'

'_No, she was too busy to notice. I'll show you tomorrow. ' Noticing that it was almost at the hour, she added: 'I should turn off my phone now, it's almost time. See you tomorrow :-)_'

She put her phone back in her pocket and stood up, wringing her hands absentmindedly.

'_I'm actually pretty nervous… I hope it goes okay._'

Fuu really wasn't helping matters.

"Onee-chan, anyone can see you there. Move further back."

"Grr…"

The hour came, and then went.

Itsuki wasn't worried by the 2 minute mark, but she was by the 5 minute mark, and when 10 minutes had come and gone she felt rather downcast. It seemed like either he had changed his mind, or it was just a mean joke all along.

Fuu had had the sense to behave herself and now she jumped off the roof and awkwardly approached Itsuki.

"I'm sorry Itsuki. M-Maybe he had some kind of family matter to deal with or something!" She said, with a little too much enthusiasm.

"You don't have to say things like that Onee-chan. These things happen sometimes, right? It can't be helped." She gave a pained smile.

"Oi…" Fuu pulled her into a hug.

"Don't worry Itsuki, if any of them have any sense you'll be beating them off with a bat soon enough. And if I find out who the jerk who did this is I'll turn him into a mushy pulp, mark my words!"

"Thanks Onee-chan, but don't do anything like that, okay? I can take care of myself."

"I know you can, but it's still my job to look after you. Don't try and take everything on by yourself just because you're embarrassed by your stupid big sister, okay?"

"You're not stupid Onee-chan, you're just… overenthusiastic. And thank you. I know you always mean well."

"Eh, I try my best. Let's head home and take your mind off things, Inubouzaki style!"

Itsuki nodded.

"We should get our stuff first though. You left everything behind because you were so worked up."

"…Oh, you're right. I thought something felt off."

As they headed down the stairs, Fuu noticed a figure standing around a corner, with only part of their shoulder visible. She couldn't actually see anything apart from said shoulder, but Fuu being Fuu assumed that this must be the hated boy who she wanted to 'talk to'.

"YOU! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE PLAYING AT YOU LITTLE CREEP!"

"Onee-chan no!"

"Can't she be trusted for five minutes!?"

Fuu grabbed the offending persons sleeve and gave a violent tug, pulling the person around to face her.

"F-Fuu, what the hell!?"

Unfortunately for Fuu, said person turned out to be Karin. Realising her mistake, she let go and held up her hands in a placating gesture, unfortunately as Karin had already been thrown completely off balance letting go of her merely made things worse, as she stumbled over and landed on her face.

"Onee-chan!"

"Oh shit-!"

Itsuki pushed past Fuu and helped the extremely irate Karin up.

"Sorry Karin-san, she thought you were someone else…and she can't be trusted in the slightest apparently." She gave the taller girl her most intimidating glare, which would have made most people laugh, but as it was Fuu resulted in her cowering away.

"Geh, I'm sorry Itsuki…"

"Wait, what!? It was me you manhandled, not her!"

"Well, uh…my apology to you was implicit?"

"Onee-chan!"

"Fuu, there is something seriously wrong with you." Karin drove her point home by swinging her crutch into the taller girls shin.

"Ow! Look I'm really sorry okay? I thought you were the bas-er, jerk that stood Itsuki up!"

"And you decided the best thing to do was start punching things!? Honestly, I'm not even convinced you're related."

"What!? Don't listen to her Itsuki! We have the same parents!"

"That's enough Onee-chan! Apologise to Karin-san properly or I'll stop speaking to you altogether."

"W-What!? I'm sorry Karin, it's all my fault! Forgive me!" Fuu wailed.

'_Oh good grief._'

Karin stared at her, then looked away awkwardly. "…Sure, whatever. No harm done I guess."

"That's the spirit! No hard feelings right!?" The blonde wrapped her arm around the shorter girls shoulders.

"Get off."

"Right."

Fuu shuffled back sheepishly, failing to notice how annoyed her younger sibling looked.

"S-So, what are you doing hanging around here anyway? Did you come to check on Itsuki?"

"Huh? Y-Yeah that's right. How're you doing Itsuki?"

"I'm fine. No one turned up, but it doesn't matter. These things happen."

"Oh." Karin didn't seem to know what to say.

"We're heading down to the club room to pick our stuff up. Do you want to walk back with us?"

"Hmph. Sure, as long as you don't start lunging at every guy we meet."

They headed to the club room in a slightly uncomfortable silence. As they reached the door Karin waited until Fuu was inside before she tapped Itsuki's shoulder.

"Hey Itsuki, I really need to talk to you. Alone."

She shot a meaningful look at Fuu, who was out of earshot.

Things clicked into place for Itsuki at that point. Why no one had turned up, the texts, Karin waiting for almost an hour supposedly just to see how things went, how worried she'd looked back when Fuu had said she'd be on the roof as well…

She felt a surge of annoyance.

'_Why didn't she tell me in a text instead of letting me think I'd been stood up!? Is everyone in my life completely unreliable!?_'

The other girl seemed to notice how annoyed the blonde looked.

"Uh, I mean if you don't want to that's fine, you're probably busy so-"

"No, we'll talk. I'll tell Onee-chan I'm staying behind, wait here."

She entered the classroom. "Onee-chan, I'm staying back with Karin-san for a while, so head back without me okay?"

Seeing the look on her sister's face she quickly added, "No it's not because I'm angry with you or because I don't want you as a sister anymore."

Satisfied that she'd headed off another outburst, she picked up her bag, said goodbye and left Fuu sputtering behind her.

Karin led the way out of school, heading towards a nearby park. They didn't talk on the way, largely because neither of them were sure what to say.

Coming up to a bench, Karin said, "Do you mind if we sit for a while? My legs kind of tired."

"I'm pretty tired too, let's."

Itsuki sat first. Karin stood there uncertainly for a moment, moved to sit by Itsuki, then thought better of it and sat at the other end of the bench.

She sat there pushing her thumbs together for a minute, before opening her mouth to speak…and promptly shutting it again.

'_I guess she's not going to take the initiative._'

"Karin-san, were you the one who sent me that letter?"

The mousy haired girl jerked in her seat like an electrocuted ferret. "W-W-What!? How did you figure it out!?"

"It was pretty obvious taking everything together."

"Hmph, w-well since you figured it out then l-let's cut to the chase! D-Do you want to go out sometime or something?"

Despite her attempt at sounding detached, her voice had shot up by an octave and had a distinct waver to it. Her face had also betrayed her by doing its best impression of a tomato.

Itsuki felt her annoyance at her decreasing, but she resisted the temptation to overlook the issues she had. If there was one thing she'd learnt from dealing with Fuu it was that you couldn't let these type of people off the hook or else they'd become unmanageable.

"Before we talk about that I want to know why you left me on the roof thinking I'd been stood up. I was pretty upset you know? And you sent me those texts, so I know you could have said something."

"Ugh, I'm sorry okay? I didn't want to confess with your crazy sister there, I mean it'd be weird even if it wasn't her, so I decided to talk to you afterwards, and I meant to let you know through the phone you know, but it felt kind of weird just suddenly saying something like that so I decided to ask how you were doing first and then bring it up, but by the time I actually phoned you I couldn't get through so I had to wait-!"

She trailed off panting.

'_I guess that's a decent enough reason…_'

"Well if it's like that I'll forgive you, but you should have let me know. I really was upset."

"S-Sorry…"

Itsuki decided that Karin was suitably chastised, so that just left the small matter of the love confession to deal with.

Sensing that Karin was unlikely to be forward at this point Itsuki took the lead.

"So, you wanted to confess to me right? I'm here now, so if you still want to then, um…"

'_Gosh, this is kind of embarrassing._'

Karin's posture stiffened abruptly.

"Ah, w-well, if you really want to hear it then I guess I have to come out and say it!" She said in her best attempt at a self-assured voice. "I-I think you're…" She trailed off all of a sudden and sat there with her mouth flapping open and shut, hand clenching her skirt so hard that Itsuki half expected her to tear it, face getting redder with each second that passed by.

Itsuki smiled lightly.

"I understand what you're trying to say Karin-san. Don't be embarrassed okay?" she said.

"Er, well, then, w-what do you say? W-Want to go out sometime, maybe?"

"Um, well I actually-"

"No, its fine, I get it. You think it's weird that a girl's interested in you, especially someone you know. Don't worry about it, it doesn't matter. Just forget about it, I won't mention it again."

"What? No, I was going to-"

"Dammit, you must think I'm a total creep as well as a jerk. It's not like I've been checking you out the whole time we've known each other or anything, so don't get the wrong idea okay? I mean, I barely even noticed you were there at first, it's not like you said much after all. A-At any rate I don't even care that much, I wasn't-"

"Let's go on a date tomorrow."

"Huh, uh, w-w-wha-"

"Is six o'clock okay for you? Let's meet at your house and decide where to go from there."

"What?"

"I should get back now, Onee-chan's probably worrying. You know what she's like. See you tomorrow!"

Suddenly feeling daring, she scooted to the other end of the bench and lightly planted a kiss on Karin's cheek, then stood up and left without waiting for a reaction.

Karin for her part sat there frozen for 5 solid minutes before heading home in a confused but happy daze.

* * *

Next chapter: Karin attempts to have a successful first date with Itsuki.


	2. Chapter 2

And here's chapter 2, sorry it's so late. Thanks for the favourites and reviews. This chapter: Karin attempts to make up for her failure to ask Itsuki out properly by giving her a great date.

* * *

Karin adjusted her tie to the right, back to the left, then ever so slightly back to the right again. Then back to the left once more.

'_Is that lined up properly now? Maybe I shouldn't wear a tie at all…but then the shirt might look kind of off. Maybe I should wear a different shirt…but there isn't much time left to change…argh, this is awful! At this rate I won't even be going on a date, I'll just be kneeling over with a heart attack. What should I do…_'

Finally she decided to leave what she was wearing alone. They were her best clothes after all, so it wasn't like she could do any better.

'_Okay, now that that's sorted out that leaves me with 5 minutes to do everything else. Damn it._'

Luckily she only had one pair of formal shoes, so that didn't present a problem. That just left rinsing her face, putting on some extra deodorant, using some breath freshener and brushing her hair again. And maybe cleaning her crutch too, just to be on the safe side.

"Okay, there's no problem. I'm trained to get ready quickly in an emergency. Here I go…!"

With a truly heroic effort, she finished with 10 seconds to spare.

'_Made it. Now I just have to wait._'

Despite agreeing to meet up at six, Karin had decided to be ready by half past five, just in case. Fuu wanted Itsuki back before ten-of course they hadn't actually mentioned that it was a date, given what her reaction was likely to be-so they'd have four hours together. Acting normally with each other at school had been hard, but they'd managed to pull it off and the elder Inubouzaki hadn't disemboweled her for looking at her sister the wrong way. Yet.

Time tends to slow down at the least convenient times, so after sitting down to wait she quickly found herself tapping her foot and glancing at the clock every few seconds.

'_Maybe I should brush my teeth again, there's nothing more off putting than bad breath after all. And maybe put some more deodorant on as well._'

Unfortunately, Itsuki did turn up early. When Karin-who was in the middle of brushing her teeth-heard the knock she ended up choking, only narrowly avoiding getting toothpaste all over her shirt.

'_Oh Shinju-sama, she's here early. Breath Karin, breath! Everything will be fine, she's the one who asked you out after all._'

She headed towards the front door, then thought better of it, doubled back to her room and put some more deodorant on. With all of the training she did every day she was bound to smell after all, so she needed to wear a lot of deodorant, right? Body odor was just as bad as bad breath after all. She sprayed on as much as she could, unfortunately she ran out before she'd finished.

'_Dammit, I could have sworn I had more than that left…_'

In her worry about BO, she'd ended up using more than half of the can.

'_It'll have to do. I'm sure it's enough._'

Taking several deep breaths to calm herself, she opened the door.

"H-Hi! You're early…"

'_No, wait, what if she thinks I'm having a go at her? Stupid…!_'

"I left early because I didn't want to be late, but I guess I overdid it," Itsuki explained. "It looks like you're already ready though."

"Uh, yeah, you know."

"…"

"…"

"…So what now?" Karin asked. "Um, is there somewhere in particular that you'd like to go?"

"I thought you were choosing…"

"Oh."

'_Why didn't I think about this!? What's wrong with me!?_'

"…Movie!" she blurted out suddenly.

Itsuki jumped a little at the sudden exclamation.

"What?"

"Let's see a movie! You pick which one!"

"That sounds good. Wha-"

"I'll get my coat!"

She shut the door on Itsuki mid-sentence, then leaned against the wall with her face in her hand.

'_Did I just… I did. Kill me, someone, please._'

Cringing all the way, she got her coat and headed back to the door where she'd left her date standing outside.

'_Smooth, really smooth. I bet she's planning the next date already._'

Resigning herself to the knowledge that the entire date was going to be a disaster, she opened the door again.

"H-Hey, are you ready to go?"

"…Sure, let's go."

The blonde looked rather put out at being made to stand outside like that, but smiled all the same. As soon as Karin stepped outside however, her hand shot up to cover her nose and mouth and she fell into a coughing fit.

"Are you okay?" Karin asked in concern.

'_It isn't BO is it!?_'

"I-I'm fine, it's _*cough*_ j-just a tickle…*_cough cough_*"

"Do you want to come inside and get something to drink?"

"No, it's fine. Let's go."

She started walking away without waiting for an answer.

'_Did I do something wrong? Well, of course I did but…_'

The cinema was quite close, but Karin had decided to be chivalrous and order a taxi. Of course this led to an extra 10 minutes of waiting around trying to avoid awkward silences with even more awkward small talk (the highlight being "So do you go to school?" "Um…yes…?"), but still.

In the taxi, Itsuki spent the whole ride with her face held towards the window which she had opened immediately after getting in, which convinced the nervous wreck sitting next to her that it really was BO that was the problem.

After paying for the taxi-which the older girl insisted on doing herself-they entered the cinema and checked out which films were playing.

"It doesn't look like there's much on," Karin observed. She had half expected this given the way things were going, so she wasn't even surprised.

"I'm sure there must be something good," Itsuki replied. She was still standing at least three feet away from her date at all times, said date noticed with resignation.

"Let's see…The Butchering 4, 50 Shades of Razzmatazz, Karate Cop 7…hm. I guess there really aren't that many good films on at this time of year."

'_Why didn't I think about this properly? Ugh. I'm probably going to die alone except for my 30 cats._'

"Karin-san? What do you think?"

"Huh?"

"I said what about this one? It's an old classic anime movie. It's got five stars so it must be worth a look, right?"

Karin looked at the poster.

'_Grave of the Fireflies… that sounds kind of familiar. Wasn't it some family drama set in a war? Well, it's not like there's anything better on. I think it's supposed to be sad, so maybe I'll get to put my arm around her. Let's see… next showing in 15 minutes, that's lucky. Wow, I really didn't think this movie idea through did I?_'

"Sounds good. You want to get some food as well?"

"No, I ate before I left. Do you?"

"I'm fine. Let's go in and get some good seats."

To Karin's chagrin, Itsuki noticeably leaned away from her through the whole movie.

* * *

90 minutes later…

Karin and Itsuki staggered out of the showing leaning on each other. Both of their eyes were red and tear filled and their faces were flushed with distress.

"Ah…ah…Shinju-sama, why…" Karin choked out.

"T-They died…both of them just…they were so young! It was so awful!" Itsuki looked more upset than Karin had ever seen her.

'_Why is this happening? Why is everything going so horribly wrong? …That poor little girl…!_'

"Hah, I'm s-sorry Itsuki, this is m-my fault, we should h-have gone s-omewhere elseeee…!"

"N-No, I-I-I picked t-the movie, it's my fauuuult, aaaaah it was so sad…!"

Both of them slumped down onto the seats situated at the side of the lobby. Mercifully, there wasn't that many people around at the time, so they didn't attract too many stares and they stayed there until they'd managed to compose themselves. Still sniffling slightly they exited the cinema.

At this point it was just turning dark and there was a chill in the air. Despite the date having gone even worse than Karin had imagined, she was still determined to at least try and salvage the situation, so she saw this as an opportunity.

"Huh, looks like it's pretty cold for this time of the year. Are you cold Itsuki?"

"No, not really."

"…Are you sure? Y-You can borrow my jacket if you like," she offered, half taking it off.

"No, I'm fine thanks."

Itsuki looked strangely wary.

'_Looks like I'm going to stay single,_' Karin thought in resignation. '_I wish I'd brought some dried sardines with me as a pick me up._'

"Do you want to get something to eat now? All that cryings made me hungry."

Itsuki giggled a little at this.

'_At least she doesn't seem to be permanently scarred. Fuu would murder me._'

"There's a new fancy Western style restaurant near the city centre. Would you like to go there?" Now that she'd mostly given up hope of a second date, Karin found herself starting to ease up. At least they were still friends. Things could have turned out worse.

"Hmm, honestly I think I need some udon to cheer me up after…that. Can we go to the usual place instead?"

"Oh, sure."

"You know, you should be careful about who you talk about Western food in front of. If Togo-san heard you suggest that you know what would happen."

"Good point," Karin replied with a wince.

One time she'd suggested going to a curry house once a month instead of the udon shop and Togo had ranted for a full 10 minutes about the superior health properties and taste of Japanese food. No one had suggested going anywhere else since then.

After a short walk they arrived. Karin felt a surprising amount of relief at being back on familiar ground. Sitting facing each other, they ordered their usual dishes and as they started to relax the conversation started to flow more easily than it had all evening. Unfortunately Fuu chose that moment to enter the shop, Yuna and Togo in tow.

Spotting them the second she passed the entrance way with her patented 'little sister radar' she headed straight over to their table and sat down next to Karin. Togo sat next to Itsuki after positioning Yuna at the other side of her.

"Hey you two, I didn't think I'd see you here. How was- _*cough*_ holy Shinju-sama what the hell is that? _*sniff sniff*_ Geez Karin just how much deodorant do you think you need? Are you trying to launch a chemical attack on my poor sister!?"

"Onee-chan, don't shout like that! Don't be rude to poor Karin-san."

The blonde shot the mortified girl a sympathetic look…or maybe it was a pitying one. Yuna and Togo shot Fuu a warning look, although Yuna's wasn't particularly intimidating.

Karin was cringing in her seat.

'_Is that what it was!? Damn it, I thought…! Damn it! I screwed up so badly…_'

"All right, all right, I get it…but seriously Karin, ease up a bit okay? Phew…"

"W-What are you even doing here apart from making a scene? You said you were busy tonight."

'_I was glad that there was no chance of running into you…_'

"I was lonely in that apartment all by myself so I finished up in record time and came out with these guys. I get so lonely without my cute little sister there!" she said, patting Itsuki on the head.

"Did you two have fun?" Yuna chipped in, kindly trying to move the conversation away from her friends deodorant mishap.

"Eh…"

"Um…"

Fuu noticed their, or rather Itsuki's, hesitation immediately.

"What? That reactions kind of…wait, you didn't run into that boy did you!?" she said, grabbing onto Karin's arm and leaning right into her face.

"Wha- no, we didn't run into anyone! Get out of my personal space you lunatic!" She grabbed Fuu's face with her hand and pushed her back.

"Tch…you can't be too careful with guys like that. Itsuki, you have to be on your guard from now on!"

"Fuu-senpai, don't be so melodramatic. You'll scare the poor girl," Togo frowned at her.

"Better scared than unprepared!" the older girl replied smugly.

"Even if it was a mean prank, I don't think that kind of response is really necessary…" Yuna responded. "I mean, it's not like she has a stalker-" She knew she'd made a mistake as soon as the words left her mouth.

"A stalker! Why didn't I think of that!? It all makes sense now!" Fuu cried with a horrified expression. "Itsuki, you're not allowed out on your own anymore."

"Onee-chan, there is no stalker. Please stop embarrassing yourself," Itsuki replied tiredly.

"You don't know that! In cases like this-"

"I know who it was. It was all a big misunderstanding and everything is cleared up now. So there's no need to worry, okay?"

Karin tensed up.

"What!? You know who it was!? Who was it!?"

"I'm not telling you. I know what will happen if I do."

"Tch! Are you dating him? Because if you are I-"

"Onee-chan, I can definitely say that I'm not dating any sort of creep, so you can just…take it easy, alright?"

"Hmm, well as long as you didn't end up dating any undesirables I guess I can let the incident slide. Damn heart breakers…"

"Phew…" Karin relaxed, as much as she could at least. That could have ended unpleasantly.

"We should really order something Fuu-senpai, all we've done since we came in is disturb the other customers."

"Huh? Oh yeah, I guess we should. Do you two want anything else?"

"Yeah, might as well I guess," Karin shrugged.

"No, I'm pretty full. I haven't even finished this yet," Itsuki declined. Luckily for the Inubouzaki's food budget she didn't have her older sisters voracious appetite.

The food arrived shortly and they settled down, to everyone's relief. Yuna's hands were still a little unsteady so Togo still fed her when they went out together, which had led to countless 'married couple' cracks, although neither of them seemed to mind it had to be said.

Karin glumly accepted that the date was officially over now that her date's big sister had crashed it, and tried to focus on the conversation at hand. The fact that she was still self-conscious about the deodorant didn't help however. Nor did the fact that Itsuki had scarcely spoken to her since Fuu barged in.

'_She must be embarrassed to be seen hanging around with a walking chemical weapon. …Well, I might as well keep trying I suppose. I can't stand quitting half way through._'

"So, uh, good udon?"

"Hmm? Oh yes, it's as good as usual."

"Oh, good."

'_For crying out loud…_'

Annoyed at and embarrassed by herself, she looked down and took a particularly big mouthful of noodles. As soon as she took them into her mouth she realised her mistake. As they hit the back of her throat she desperately fought against her reflexes and valiantly managed to hold her own against them for several seconds. Ultimately though, her body refused to let her take udon into her lungs and she sprayed the contents of her mouth directly into Itsuki's face.

"Waaah!"

"What the hell Karin!?"

"Oh dear…"

"Are you okay Itsuki-chan?"

'_Why!?_'

Karin doubled over retching and wheezing, while Itsuki flailed trying to get the noodles off of her face. Fuu raced to her sister's aid, handkerchief in hand, while Togo hit Karin's back.

"Itsuki! Are you alright? Are you burnt? Where does it hurt!? Can you see!? How many fingers am I holding up!?"

"Fuh, _*cough*_, I'm okay. It wasn't that hot. Ah, my clothes might be ruined though…are you alright Karin-san?"

"Gu-_*cough cough*_, s-sorr-_*cough cough*_…"

"You're a menace Karin. First a chemical attack then a biological one! What if she picks up germs from you? I'll hold you responsible!"

"Oh stop it Onee-chan."

Itsuki walked around the table and helped Togo assist Karin. "Don't worry about it Karin-san. These things happen," she smiled reassuringly.

"Ugh…sorry Itsuki. Seems like I caused you a lot of trouble tonight."

"N-Not…really? Well, at any rate, don't worry about it."

At that point the waitress arrived with several towels.

"Ahem…excuse us, but could you please settle down? The other customers are a little…"

"Oh, uh, sorry. Sorry. Ahem. Don't worry, this oaf will behave herself from now on," Fuu pointed right at Karin, just for good measure.

"Ugh…m'sorry…" she choked out. She accepted one of the towels and cleaned herself up.

"It's a good thing we're regular customers or we might have been thrown out," Yuna murmured in embarrassment.

"You're right…let's be on our best behaviour from this point onwards," Togo replied.

"You guys do that. And by you guys I mean you Karin. We're going home before anything else happens."

"What? Onee-chan-"

"It's a school night Itsuki, you need your rest. Let's call it a night."

"_*sigh*_…Alright Onee-chan. Goodnight everyone. And, um, thank you for tonight Karin-san. I'll phone you after I get home, okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure."

'_I know how that's going to go. Thanks for the date, but you're a moron and I never want to be in the same room alone with you ever again._'

"Bye guys!"

"Goodbye."

"Bye you two!"

"Ugh…"

Karin let her head slam into the table and lay there, feeling incredibly demoralised.

"Bad date?"

"…..What?"

Karin looked up to see Togo looking at her pointedly.

"Wait, what? W-Why would you think…"

"I have working eyes and ears."

"Eh? Wait, are Karin-chan and Itsuki-chan on a date? I have working eyes and ears too…"

"You're too innocent to realise these kinds of things Yuna-chan."

"Hang on, I didn't…oh never mind. It doesn't matter either way. It was a disaster from beginning to end."

"Aw, it can't have been that bad Karin-chan!"

"I almost choked her to death with my deodorant, took her to see one of the most depressing movies ever, asked her if she went to school and spat udon in her face. It couldn't have been worse if I'd tried."

"I doubt that," Togo said under her breath. Karin still heard her however.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" she asked, feeling quite offended.

"Ahem, well, you're not denying that this sort of thing isn't your forte, are you?" Togo replied, trying not to show the blush on her cheeks. "From what I saw here, I'm more than willing to believe that it was a disaster."

"Thanks. Thank you. You're making me feel so much better."

"It's not a condemnation. I'm here to offer you help. For starters, that love letter Itsuki received yesterday must have been from you, correct? Not turning up to your own love confession is incredibly bad form. What were you thinking?"

"W-Well, Fuu was there and all…besides, I tried to phone her! I just didn't do it soon enough and she turned her phone off…" Karin muttered defensively.

"And thanks to your inability to tackle those problems head on you started off more flustered than you would have otherwise. And not only that, but because you didn't deal with that situation properly in the first place Itsuki has undoubtedly formed a much lower opinion of you as a girlfriend than she would have if you'd handled things better. I'm frankly surprised that she agreed to go out with you at all after that mess," Togo replied, trying to tone down the harshness as much as she could while still being honest. Being blunt now was better than letting the poor girl make more of a mess of things after all.

"Ugh…you think I don't know that? I wanted to make today perfect to make up for things, but nothing went right…it's like I was cursed or something. She probably would have had a better time if I'd pushed her off a cliff," the mousy haired girl replied, letting her head thud back onto the table (rather melodramatically the other two thought).

"I doubt that's true, but clearly things could have gone a lot better. Listening to what you've said I think the problem is almost entirely nerves and we all know we're more likely to get things wrong when we're nervous. The only way you're going to get things back on track is if you calm down and stop trying so hard. You've always been able to talk to her normally until this point, correct? All you have to do is talk to her the way you have been until now and things are bound to go better next time."

"You think so? I dunno…now that we're dating I don't know how to act around her at all. Is it really okay to act like we're still just friends? It doesn't really seem like that'd get me anywhere in the long run."

"Just think of it as a stepping stone. It's better than not talking with her at all, or saying something inappropriate and embarrassing yourself even more."

"I-I guess…we can't carry on like this at any rate. The way things are going I'll end up walking her into a strip club or something even worse than that…" Karin shuddered. She'd been half joking, but it was actually something to worry about at this point.

"Togo-san is right though Karin-chan. Just try and be yourself, Itsuki really likes you the way you are. There's no point in trying to behave differently when she already likes you!" Yuna piped up, reaching over and patting the shorter girl's hand.

"…Yeah, you're right. I just have to take it easy next time."

"Perhaps you should not so much go on a date as spend time together for a little while. I'm sure that that will take some of the pressure off."

"Mm, that's right! You should just hang out next time!"

Karin nodded. "Yeah…yeah, next time I'll just invite her around or something. …Thanks you two. I was pretty much ready to give up."

"Mmhm, no Karin-chan! Don't forget, you're likely to succeed if you try! Just have a little faith in yourself!"

"She's right. Just have a little confidence and you'll turn things around."

Karin smiled, weakly, granted, but it was still better than what she'd managed the rest of the evening.

"Thanks, really. I'm going to call it a night now. See you tomorrow."

"Goodnight! And good luck too!"

"Goodnight."

Karin left and headed home. Her leg actually felt pretty good considering how much she'd used it today, which was something she supposed, so she forewent a taxi despite the amount of time she'd already spent on her feet and walked the route home at a steady pace.

* * *

After she got home she headed straight to the couch and collapsed on it without even changing first. She suddenly felt exhausted, although she wasn't really sure why considering she'd been sitting down most of the evening. Remembering that Itsuki had promised to phone her, she pulled out her phone and checked for missed calls (there were none thank goodness) and made doubly sure that it wasn't on silent. Then she sat for a while, phone in hand. Not that she was desperate or anything, but it wasn't like she had anything better to do right now.

15 minutes passed with her lying there, checking her phone more often than was necessary, just in case the ringtone didn't go off…or something. Finally, the phone rang. She jumped and started to reach for the answer button, then thought '_I should play it cool and not look too clingy_' and waited for a few seconds before answering.

"H-Hey, Itsuki."

Her voice broke again as she spoke, leading to her smacking her hand into her face in embarrassment.

"Hi Karin-san. Did you get home okay?"

"Y-Yeah, it's good-I mean yeah."

"…"

"…"

"Look, I just wanted to say sorry. For everything I mean. Especially the movie. And spitting udon into your face. Don't, you know, feel obligated to go out again or anything…n-not that I'm saying that you should, or would, I mean-"

"Karin-san?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"It's okay. I know it wasn't the best date ever but…um…I really like you. Just because we had a bad date doesn't mean that I don't want to go out again. Why don't we try again in a few days?"

"Eh? What, you really want to…? I-I mean, sure, let's do that. Fine by me."

"I'm glad. I'll see you tomorrow at school then. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Karin hung up, feeling proud that her voice had only cracked once…which said a lot about how low her expectations were really, but still. She'd actually managed to get a second chance! This time she wasn't going to screw it up.


	3. Chapter 3

Here's the third chapter. I'm so sorry it took so long, I had to finish a few friends birthday fics and my Yuna/Togo fic before I did this, time constraints and all. The next chapter should be out in less than a month to make up for it though. Thank you for all of the reviews.

* * *

Having learnt from the previous disaster, this time the two of them had decided to keep things low key. Today's plan was to hang out at Karin's house for a few hours, anything else could be improvised. At least this was cheaper than going out again, Karin's wallet still hadn't recovered from the last date.

Itsuki arrived exactly on time and knocked on the door, hoping that Karin was wearing less deodorant today. It was bad enough when she could get some distance between them after all, she might well suffocate in close quarters. After a surprisingly long time Karin opened the door. It seemed that she hadn't over dressed like she had last time, opting for one of her usual brown shirt and grey jeans combinations instead, although Itsuki had actually found her over formal clothing quite cute.

"Oh, hi Itsuki. You want to come in?" Karin asked in an overly casual sounding voice. Apparently she was still nervous, which Itsuki still couldn't help but find endearing, even after the unfortunate events of two days ago.

'_I hope she doesn't spit food into my face again_,' she found herself thinking idly.

"That's what I came here for," she replied teasingly. Karin flushed a little and mumbled something incoherent, then held the door open for her.

'_Maybe I shouldn't tease her for a while. She's nervous enough without any help,_' the blonde thought as she entered. '_At least she not wearing so much deodorant this time._'

"Do you want something to eat, or drink, or…?" the older girl asked.

"Sure. You have tea right?"

"Yeah. I'll, um, get some." Karin hurried off to the kitchen, then walked back and said, "U-Um, you should probably sit down in here, I mean if you want to…"

"Okay Karin-san. So what are we going to do while I'm here?"

'_She must have come up with a plan after what happened last time, right?'_

"Oh yeah, I thought we could watch a movie and then maybe play video games for a bit. That's okay by you right?"

"Of course. It sounds fun."

"G-Good."

"…"

"…"

"Oh, uh, I'll go and get the…" Karin trailed off and headed for the kitchen again.

Itsuki hung up her jacket, then went and sat down on the sofa, hands clenched lightly on her knees. Now that she was here she was starting to feel nervous herself. She wanted this to work out, but the way things were going wasn't good by any stretch of the imagination. She didn't understand though, they'd never had any problems talking to each other before, but now that they were allegedly dating it was hard to make even the kind of small talk you'd make with a stranger at a bus stop. It was so awkward…

Karin came and placed the drinks down on the table then sat down on the sofa, a noticeable distance further away than necessary to Itsuki's chagrin. "So, uh, what do you want to watch?"

"Um, how about a romantic comedy? Seeing as this is a date and all…"

"H-Huh? Oh, yeah…" Karin mumbled, looking down. She headed to the movie section and selected the genre. "You like the look of any of these?"

"Ah, after what happened last time I think you should choose. No matter what you choose it can't be any worse than what I ended up picking," Itsuki said, grimacing at the memory of the horrifying movie she'd ended up subjecting them both to.

"I guess," Karin said noncommittally.

She ended up selecting a movie about a man who asked his female friend to pose as his girlfriend for two weeks for some convoluted reason. Itsuki scooted over closer to Karin as the opening credits started to play, feeling slightly relieved that the other girl didn't move further away in response (which was a sign of just how badly things were going she supposed, but still).

As the characters were introduced, in a particularly cliché and overdone manner from what Itsuki saw (although she wasn't really paying attention), she glanced at Karin out of the corner of her eye. At first she thought she was actually watching the movie, but upon closer inspection Itsuki saw that she wasn't paying attention at all. Her eyes kept drifting in Itsuki's direction and the hand closest to her kept almost imperceptibly half lifting off of the sofa, before dropping back down just as quickly.

'_She wants to hold hands,' _Itsuki realised with a start. '_Wow, she really is shy.'_ This was a good sign though right? It meant that she still wanted things to work out and hadn't given up hope yet. She waited eagerly for the touch of a hand to arrive, for five minutes, then ten…

'_She chickened out…' _Looking straight at her this time, the blonde could see that Karin had a dejected air about her. Her hands were folded in her lap and didn't look like they were moving any time soon. '_This is no good at all.'_

As the younger of the two Itsuki had been happy to let Karin take the lead, that was how things were supposed to work after all, but it was clear at this point that if she let this continue there wouldn't be a relationship to lead in. Enough was enough. "Karin-san, give me your hand."

"W-What?"

"Give me your hand."

Karin shrank back a little at the intense stare Itsuki was giving her. "Um…"

"Your hand," Itsuki repeated, making a 'give it here' motion with her own hand.

"Okay…"

Karin held her hand out in trepidation, then jumped when Itsuki clasped it in her own and pulled their hands into her lap. '_That's more like it.'_

Just for good measure, Itsuki moved further along the sofa and leaned in against the older girl. It was embarrassing-really, really embarrassing-but it was better than sitting in almost total silence on opposite sides of the sofa for the next two hours.

"You have pretty rough skin on your hands Karin-san. It's because of all the training you do, right?" she asked, running her thumb curiously over the skin on the other girl's palm.

Karin looked shell shocked by the situation, but after a few moments managed to collect herself and mumbled out, "Yeah, it's, uh, training. And stuff…your skins really soft. It's n-nice, I guess."

"Thanks. It's a little embarrassing though when I compare mine to yours, since we were both Hero's and all. I feel like I slacked off a little."

"Uh, well, it's not like you didn't pull your weight when we were fighting so I guess I can let you off. Be grateful though, I don't go easy on just anyone! …Besides, I think you're fine the way you are. It's not like everybody needs to be an athlete."

"That's sweet of you to say."

"N-Not really."

They drifted into a semi-comfortable silence, hands still intertwined. After a little while Itsuki felt Karin's muscles relax and smiled to herself. Finally they were getting somewhere. Unlike the movie. "…This movie is pretty bad huh?" Itsuki said, wincing at a particularly forced joke.

"Yeah…at least it's a different kind of bad than the last one though. You want to watch something else or what?"

"Mmm…why don't we look at some animal shows? We can't go wrong looking at cute puppies and kittens right?" Itsuki suggested.

"Yeah you're right. There's no way that that could end badly," Karin said with a wry smile.

* * *

Surprisingly enough, nothing did go wrong.

"Haha, what a stupid dog. I can't believe it spent fifteen minutes barking at it's own reflection," Karin snorted.

"I almost wish that I could have a dog of my own now though, or a cat. They're all so cute!" Itsuki giggled.

"Apartment rules are a pain huh? I wouldn't mind an athletic dog to go running with, but there's a strict no pets policy here. Your place is the same right?"

"Yeah…it's really sad. I want to move somewhere that takes animals when I move out," Itsuki said, thinking of all the cute dog breeds that she could choose from.

"Yeah."

"…"

"…"

_'Oh no, not another awkward silence…I need to think of something else to talk about…'_ Itsuki thought worriedly.

To her surprise however, Karin stepped up to the bat. "So you want to play those video games?"

"Sure. What have you got?"

"Only a couple of survival horror games and first person shooters, I'm not really a big player. I haven't got many but there should be something decent. You choose one you like the look of, they're over there."

"Okay." Itsuki crouched down and browsed the selection.

'_These look very gruesome,'_ she thought while looking at the front of a box depicting a man being bitten by a bloody rotting zombie, '_And some of these are 18+ as well…how did she get hold of them?'_

She settled on a relatively less graphic looking shooting game in the end and they decided to play against one another.

"You played this before Itsuki?" Karin asked.

"No, I don't play many video games," Itsuki replied.

"Hmph! Don't expect me to go easy on you just because you're a beginner!"

* * *

"…what the hell…"

"That was fun, do you want to play another round?"

"Ugh…sure, why not."

To Karin's disconcertion, Itsuki turned out to be a natural at video games. After being trounced in three out of five games by the novice player her ego was thoroughly bruised.

'_I can't believe this…'_ She glanced at Itsuki out of the corner of her eye. The smaller girl looked as innocent as usual, which somehow made her feel even worse. After another round in which she spent her time trying to stay alive rather than making any progress, she fell into a state of despair.

'_Am I actually just really bad at video games or something?'_ she wondered. '_Whatever.'_

Looking at Itsuki however, she felt her bad mood dissipate. Her date looked like she was really enjoying herself, which was what she'd wanted all along. '_Guess I can't rage quit now,'_ she thought with a smile.

"You look like you're having fun," she commented, "Looks like you're a natural huh? At this rate you could end up being one of the competitive players."

"Ehehe, no way, it's just beginners luck. It is fun though. Maybe I should start playing by myself… although Onee-chan probably wouldn't approve come to think of it," she said, wincing at the thought of Fuu catching her playing anything even mildly graphic. She'd probably take to her room in a bout of hysteria.

"Seriously? She's that protective?"

"Yes…although she means well, so I don't really mind. Ever since my voice came back she's been checking up on my health nonstop. She never lets me check up on her though."

"Sounds about right for her. Don't worry about it, she'll calm down soon. Probably." Karin actually kind of doubted that, but still.

"I guess…" Itsuki glanced at the clock, then did a double take and winced. "Ah…I lost track of time. I should really head back now."

"Huh? Oh damn, I didn't realise. Sorry Itsuki."

"Ehehe, it's not your fault. I got carried away having fun beating you."

"Wha-hmph. If you say so." She walked the blonde to the door. "You okay getting back by yourself? I can walk with you if you want."

"I'll be fine. Thanks for offering though."

They both stood there uncertainly for a moment, not entirely sure what to say.

"Um, I had fun today. Thanks for inviting me."

"S-Sure. I'm glad you came, especially after last time," Karin said, cheeks reddening.

"Ehe, let's just pretend that never happened. I think we'll both be better off for it," Itsuki said, brushing her hair behind her ears

"I guess. …So, do you want to, uh, do this again sometime?"

Itsuki smiled. "I'd like that. Um, how about on Sunday? I wouldn't have to worry about the time so much then."

"Sure. I'll find some more games and we can see if your beginners lucks worn off by then!"

"We'll see. Good night Karin-san."

"Night Itsuki." Karin waved at the girls retreating form, then shut the door. Now that she didn't have to keep up appearances anymore her nerves overtook her at last and she leaned against the door heavily, breathing a sigh of relief. That had gone better than she'd been expecting. Hell, she'd even got a third date out of it. Her face split into a wide grin. Finally, things were going her way! At this rate they might even end up going steady. She reddened at the thought and shook her head. Best not to get ahead of herself.

At any rate, she had things to do, she shouldn't be standing around blushing like some lovesick idiot. She slapped her face lightly and went to do her homework and physio…although she couldn't help but be distracted when her face found itself smiling for no particular reason the rest of the night.

* * *

Itsuki shut the door behind her and slipped her shoes and coat off. That had gone reasonably well. Maybe things between them would work out after all

"Itsukiiiii, you're fifteen minutes late! Text me if you're running behind schedule, okay!?"

"Ah, sorry Onee-chan. I'll remember next time," Itsuki said, walking into the kitchen and getting a juice from the fridge.

Fuu looked over at her from her position at the sink. "So…did you have fun with Karin?"

"Oh yes, it was fun. We watched these really cute animals on TV for a while then played some games," Itsuki said, a smile coming to her face.

"Not violent games right?"

"No…" It wasn't like there were organs flying all over the screen or anything at any rate.

"Good. …So was anyone else there?" Fuu asked, trying and failing to sound casual.

'_…Is she really still worried about 'That Boy'? Goodness.'_ Itsuki thought, wondering just how long this was going to go on for.

"No Onee-chan, we were the only ones there."

"I see…well, I'm glad you had fun with her."

"Um, I said I'd go over again on Sunday. That's okay right?"

"Oh, so soon? You two are getting pretty close huh?"

"Mm, we get along pretty well even if we don't have all that much in common. I was a little surprised at first, but I'm glad." Another smile rose to her face and she tucked her hair behind her ear, without even noticing she was doing it.

"Hmm…well that's good then. She's not trying to make you lift weights or anything though, right? If I walk in one day and find you bench pressing the fridge I'm not going to be happy about it!" Fuu said.

"Don't worry, we didn't lift any weights. It's not really my thing. Maybe I should ask her to teach me how to fight a little though…it'd be good if I knew how to defend myself without the Hero System after all…"

"What!? No way, what if you get hit in the throat or mouth and hurt your voice!? I absolutely forbid it! I'll get you a taser or something," Fuu shouted, frantically waving her arms around.

"…Okay Onee-chan." There was no point in arguing, Itsuki knew this from experience.

'_Oh well…it's not like I was really looking forward to it. I hope she calms down soon though.'_

After helping clean up the living room she took a bath and headed to bed. Pulling out her mobile terminal, she saw that there was a text from Karin waiting for her.

"_You get back okay Itsuki?_"

She sent a reply off. _"I got home fine. Thanks again for today, I really did enjoy it. What are you up to now?_"

Only half a minute ticked by before she got a response.

"_Training of course. I just lifted 15kg for 30 reps with my bad arm. Pretty impressive right? I've still gotta do my distance running tonight though so I guess I'll have to leave the heavy lifting for tomorrow._"

The blonde giggled softly. "_Is this what they call 'peacocking'? How sweet…I guess I should play along._"

"_That's so impressive Karin-san. I bet it won't be long before you can lift even more than you could before. Don't go overboard though._"

Another text, this time almost instantaneous.

"_Don't worry about it, I've pushed myself way harder than this before. For me this is child's play. I'll show you just how much I can do next time you come around._"

Itsuki winced. She hoped she wouldn't have to sit and watch the other girl do bench presses all Sunday afternoon.

"_I'm heading to bed now, but I'll see you at school tomorrow. Good night!_"

"_Night Itsuki._"

Itsuki slid into bed and drifted off to sleep, looking forward to school a little more than she usually did.


	4. Chapter 4

Well, this was a lot longer than 'less than a month', wasn't it? Sorry guys. To be fair, I actually have a good reason: I've developed osteoarthritis in addition to tendinitis, so I can't write as much as I'd like to anymore. I'm better at managing it now than I was at first though, so hopefully I'll be able to get back into things. Can't give any guarantees about update timing though, sorry.

Anyway, this chapter: Karin decides to go in for a kiss, but will she get Itsuki away from her ridiculously paranoid sister long enough to manage it? Only one way to find out.

* * *

Fuu glanced at her phone with a frown. 2045…Itsuki was late coming back from Karin's house again. This was the third time in as many weeks, and Fuu's suspicions were intensifying. Itsuki never came back late from her other friends house's and even more than that, she'd only started visiting Karin regularly after she'd received that love letter. There was only one explanation, Fuu thought to herself grimly. Itsuki had been lying to her. Itsuki wasn't going out to see Karin, she was going out to meet…'That Boy'. The blonde ground her teeth. The nerve of that creature, coming anywhere near her precious, angelic little sister after standing her up like he had. When she got her hands on him…

Her murderous train of thought was derailed by the sound of the door handle. Forcing her face into a neutral expression, she went to welcome her little sister home and subtly probe her for the truth.

"I'm home Onee-chan," Itsuki called out, kicking her shoes off in the doorway.

"Welcome back," Fuu said, "But what have I told you about being late? You've been late a lot just lately, are you doing something that's making you lose track of time?"

"Hm? Not really…sorry, I'll be more careful."

"So what do you do when you're at Karin's then? Just out of curiosity," Fuu said, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall casually. "Is it just you two there? Any other 'friends' come over? You go out anywhere?"

"Huh…? It's just us, and we go the beach or udon shop sometimes but that's it…why?"

"Just wondering."

"O…kay…" Itsuki looked at her sister strangely.

"So what do you actually do there? You go over often enough that you must be having fun."

"Oh, um…"

'_Hesitancy! She must be trying to make up something plausible!_'

"Well, we usually watch at least one cute animal show…they're just so cute I could watch them all day…um, sometimes we help each other with our homework…and like I said, we go here and there sometimes…"

"Wait, do you wear a sweater and coat and scarf when you go out!? If you don't cover yourself up properly you could catch pneumonia and die!"

"Don't worry, I cover myself up properly," Itsuki replied placatingly.

"That's something at least…you're not going to the beach to train are you!? I strictly forbid it! You could hurt yourself!"

"No Onee-chan, I'm not training, I'm just watching Karin train. She likes to show off."

Well that was plausible at least, Fuu supposed. Karin was a jock at heart after all.

"Hmph…I guess that's okay then. But don't stand too close to her, she could misstep and hit you by accident!"

"Sure Onee-chan."

"So is that all you do there?" Fuu asked, remembering what she was supposed to be doing. "Just that? By yourselves?"

"Er…yes, that's pretty much it," Itsuki said nervously, slowly edging towards her room.

"I see. Well that's good for you two then, right!? It's really great that you're having so much fun!" Fuu gave her sister a wide smile, unnerving the poor girl even further. The smaller girl mumbled something and finally retreated to her room.

'_That went well,_' Fuu thought to herself. There was only one thing for it, she was convinced of that now. She'd have to go out with Itsuki when she was said she was going to Karin's, without saying so beforehand. It was the only way to be sure after all. She nodded to herself in satisfaction and went to read up on crime rates in the area. She didn't want Itsuki to be mugged after all.

* * *

"I'm telling you, she was acting really weird, much weirder than usual. I was going to tell her about us this week seen as it's been a month and all, but I think she might have it in for you…"

"Great…just when I thought I could win her over. What should we do?" Karin asked, fiddling with one of her dried sardines agitatedly.

"I'm not sure…Let's just act like we're still just friends for now so she doesn't do anything, um, rash, and I'll break the news to her gently when she's in a calmer mood."

"Rash, huh? You mean like break my arms and legs?"

"Ha…haha…" Itsuki kind of looked like she thought that was a plausible outcome, to Karin's dismay.

"Haah…if only I hadn't been such a wimp back then, this would all be over by now," Karin groused. She'd been chewing herself out over hurting Itsuki's feelings back then since the day it'd happened, Fuu being angry about it just made things ten times worse.

"You should really stop worrying about that, I told you I forgive you, right?" Itsuki said. "At any rate, I told her it was nothing more than a misunderstanding and she seemed to calm down after that. I don't know what set her off again, and I don't know why she'd be suspicious of you…"

"Who knows…like you said, she's pretty weird sometimes."

"Ah, no. Only I'm allowed to call her weird, okay? Sister privileges. I don't let anyone else get away with it."

"Huh? Oh, uh, okay," Karin said, slightly nonplussed. Then again, she doubted she'd let anyone else get away with complaining about her brother now that she thought about it. Fair enough then. "You still up for coming over this week?" she asked hopefully.

"Sure, I'll just have to make sure I come back on time. I don't want to make her worse."

"Okay, usual time then?"

"Mmhm."

"Hi you two!" Yuna said, pulling the door open. "We're not interrupting anything are we?" she said, with an excited grin.

"What? N-No! Shut up…!" Karin spluttered, flushing red and looking away.

Yuna, Togo and Sonoko trailed in and shut the door behind them. Sonoko had been filled in on the situation after she'd joined the hero club last week, apparently she found it rather exciting and kept talking about 'inspiration', whatever that meant.

"Actually we were just talking about Onee-chan," Itsuki said. "She's starting to act paranoid again. It sounds like she's not happy about me going to Karin's for some reason. I don't think she knows we're dating for sure though, or else I think she would have done something drastic…"

"Oh no, I hope she doesn't start getting upset or anything," Yuna said, a small frown creasing her brow.

"It's been around a month since you started dating, right?" Togo asked. "If she's started to figure it out herself she might just be upset that you didn't tell her sooner."

"Maybe…" Itsuki said, chewing on her lip. She'd thought about asking her tarot cards, but she'd decided as soon as she got the love letter that she'd rather not know the future when it came to love.

Sonoko's romance novel honed instincts flared up. "Hmm…I wonder if this could turn into a Romeo and-"

Togo stuck her hand over Sonoko's mouth. "Don't scare them."

Sonoko blinked. "My bad~. Don't worry you two, I'm sure that things won't end up like that~"

Karin stared at her flatly. "Thanks, you're a real help."

Itsuki shifted nervously. "Onee-chan's over the top sometimes, but she's not that bad. I'm sure that even if she doesn't take it well at first she'll be fine after a week or two."

'_Maybe,_' she added internally.

Yuna clapped her hands together suddenly. "I know what you should do Karin-chan! You should do something to get on Fuu-senpai's good side!"

Karin raised her eyebrows. "…I'm pretty sure that if fighting until I was blind, deaf and half-paralysed wasn't enough to win her over nothing else is going to do it," she said dubiously.

"You're thinking about it in the wrong way," Togo said. "Fuu-senpai already knows what a qualified Hero you are, that wouldn't be the problem. The problem is one, what happened with the love letter and two, how you handle yourself domestically. Her reaction to that fiasco speaks for itself, and she knows how…domestically challenged you are. If she knows that you sent the letter and stood Itsuki up-" Karin shuffled uncomfortably here "-then it's only natural that she'd be upset. If you want to get back on her good side, you first have to prove that you won't hurt Itsuki's feeling carelessly again, then reassure her that you'll make a good house husband."

Karin started, then flushed. "Oi, don't throw heavy words around like that!" she snapped, studiously not looking in Itsuki's direction.

"Oh you know what I mean," Togo said with an innocent smile. "Just make sure to treat Itsuki particularly well in front of Fuu-senpai for a while and make an effort with your domestic skills and I'm sure she'll come around to the idea of you two dating in no time at all."

"You think so?" Karin said, furrowing her brow in thought. What Togo was saying did actually make sense, Fuu was always going on about budgets and cleaning and stuff according to Itsuki. "Maybe I should cook something for he-"

"NO!" Togo and Yuna shouted in concert, making her jump.

"I mean…Fuu-senpai's very picky about her cooking so…" Togo said, trying to spare Karin's feelings. Yuna nodded in agreement vigorously. The mere thought of Karin (or Itsuki for that matter) cooking again was too horrifying to go unchecked though.

"Er, if you say so," Karin said, worrying for their sanity a little. "Any other ideas then?"

"Why don't you write her a poem about your feelings for Itsuki?" Sonoko said dreamily.

"Denied. She'd kill me and I don't do poems. Anyway, that's got nothing to do with domestic stuff."

"Haah…" Sonoko shook her head. It was so much harder to get people in the real world to write poems than it was in her novels.

"Maybe I could build a bookcase for her or something…" Karin said to herself.

"Or we could just wait a few days until she's in a better mood and talk to her about it normally," Itsuki said, throwing out a wild idea.

"You really think that'd work?"

"…It might. You never know."

"Don't worry you two, it's bound to turn out okay in the end. We're all friends after all!" Yuna said.

"Sure we are. Until she flies into an overprotective rage and throws me out of the club."

"Oh Karin-chan, she wouldn't do that! She's overprotective, not completely unreasonable!"

"If you say so."

Speaking of the devil, Fuu walked through the door at that very moment. "Hey guys, what're you talking about?"

"Uh, noth-"

"Romance!" Sonoko cheered.

'Thanks,' thought Karin.

Fuu's face twitched, almost imperceptibly. "Oh really? What about it? Did one of you go on a date or something?"

The rest of them tried to keep their faces neutral, to varying degrees of success.

"Haha, I'm afraid not Fuu-senpai," Togo said, trying to head off any unpleasantries, "It's all hypothetical for the moment."

"Yeah, all hypothetical," Yuna said, nodding vigorously.

Karin and Itsuki stayed quiet.

"Hmmmm…alright then. I think that we're pretty much finished here, unless anyone else has anything to say?"

"I think we're all done for today Fuu-senpai," Togo said.

"Alright then. See you guys tomorrow."

The group headed back to their respective homes, Yuna, Togo and Sonoko going one way, Karin going another and Fuu and Itsuki going in almost the opposite direction. Fuu scarcely said anything on the way back, to Itsuki's concern. It was hard to stop Fuu from talking most of the time, so something must have been bothering her. As they entered their apartment, Itsuki decided to test the waters.

"Um, Onee-chan, I thought I'd go around to Karin's on Sunday again and watch a movie with her. Is that okay with you?"

Fuu paused in the act of hanging up her coat. Silence hung in the air between them.

"…Um, Onee-chan?" Itsuki cautiously ventured. "Did you-"

"Sure, that sounds like a great idea!" Fuu said, an incredibly cheerful tone in her voice. "She must get lonely in that apartment by herself sometimes, right? I think it's great that you're keeping her company!"

"Really…? Oh, um, okay then…I'll text her and tell her."

"You do that. Tell her I said hi as well okay?"

"Okay…"

Looking nervously over her shoulder Itsuki went to her room and texted Karin.

"_Onee-chan says it's fine if I come around, but she was acting weird again. I think I should go home earlier tomorrow so she doesn't do anything strange._"

"_Roger._"

She turned her phone off with a sigh. Hopefully this would be sorted out soon.

* * *

That Sunday afternoon, Itsuki was in her room just getting ready to leave when Fuu accosted her. "I'm ready! Hurry up so we can get there early, the more time the better right?"

Itsuki turned and stared at her with wide eyes. "What…? Onee-chan?"

Fuu grinned obnoxiously. "It's like I said, she must get lonely in that apartment right? The more the merrier! Besides, I haven't been spending as much time with her just recently as I used to. It's kind of unbelievable even to me, but I actually miss us winding each other up. I mean…unless you don't want me to come for some reason?" she said, cocking her head.

"Ah…no, no, I don't mind. I was just surprised," Itsuki stammered out unconvincingly.

"Hmm. Alright then, let's go!"

"Wha- oh, okay…" She hadn't even had chance to change…

* * *

Karin inspected her teeth in the mirror intently, pulling her lips back and to the sides. '_Looks like they're clean. I guess I'm about ready then…oh boy._' She exhaled heavily. Given that their dates were likely to descend into drama for a while soon, courtesy of Itsuki's overprotective sister, she'd mulled things over for a while and come to a conclusion. Undoubtedly, the best time to have their first kiss was…today. Right now, maybe in less than an hour.

Her vision swam momentarily before she shook her head and took a few deep breaths. She had to keep a hold of her nerves, there was nothing less romantic than a sweaty wreck fainting on top of her date after all. Except maybe the deodorant incident… and that awful movie… '_No no, stop that me! You'll make yourself chicken out at this rate!_' Maybe distraction was the best strategy. She couldn't lift her weights or go on the running machine, she'd get too sweaty, so maybe-

_*knock knock*_

"Argh!" She almost jumped clean out of her skin. '_Why is she here early!? No, it's no problem. It just gives me more time to pick the right moment. Yeah, it's fine, it's fine. You just need to relax…_'

She sprayed a copious amount of breath freshener into her mouth-but not too much she was sure, she'd learnt her lesson with the deodorant-then took some more deep breaths and headed to the door, forcing her face into a normal expression, then opened it. "Hey Itsuki, did you…h-huh? What're you doing here!?" she choked out.

"It's nice to see you too," Fuu replied, raising an eyebrow. Itsuki put her hands together and mouthed her apologies from behind her.

"Uh, I didn't mean it like that, I'm just surprised is all," Karin said, grasping for a save. "I mean, I thought it was just going to be Itsuki."

'_Me and Itsuki alone together… guess I'm not going to get a kiss in today,_' she thought, disappointment tightening her chest.

"Well you know, I realised that we haven't hung out so much this last month, ever since Itsuki got that awful love letter, so I figured I might as well join you. I mean, I won't be in the way of anything, right?"

"N-No…" she said, gulping slightly. The fact that Fuu had brought up the love letter definitely wasn't a good sign. There was no way this was going to end well. She cursed to herself. '_Why did it end up like this?_'

"I guess you should come in then," she said.

The sisters came in and headed into the living room. Karin checked her phone before she followed them, belatedly seeing the warning messages Itsuki had sent her. She snapped the phone shut with a sigh. This was going to be a long two hours…

* * *

Fuu hurried ahead of Itsuki and knocked on Karin's door, wanting to see the girl's reaction when she opened it. Itsuki might be able to signal her to play along if she was the one that knocked after all.

After a full minute had ticked by with no response, Fuu was starting to think that Karin wasn't even in, confirming her suspicions.

However, as she was about to say something the door finally opened, revealing Karin with a weird, faintly nauseous look on her face.

"Hey Itsuki, did you…h-huh? What are you doing here!?" Her expression grew even stranger, as if she'd just drank another bottle of olive oil.

"It's nice to see you too," she said, incredibly relieved that Karin had been expecting Itsuki after all but wondering what her problem was…unless Itsuki and that boy had been using her apartment to meet!? That did make sense, it'd be safer than going to his place after all, and if Fuu came around looking for Itsuki then he could just hide in the bathroom so she didn't spot him. It was all coming together. '_Damn you Karin, betraying me like this…! I'll never forgive you!_'

"Uh, I didn't mean it like that, I'm just surprised is all. I mean, I thought it was just going to be Itsuki." She looked guilty, Fuu thought.

"Well you know, I realised that we haven't hung out so much this last month, ever since Itsuki got that awful love letter, so I figured I might as well join you. I mean, I won't be in the way of anything, right?" Fuu said, watching Karin's reaction closely.

"N-No…" Karin replied, starting to say something else before being cut off by an involuntary gulp. Something was going on, clearly.

"I guess you should come in then," Karin finally managed, and Fuu walked in followed by Itsuki.

They headed into the living room and sat down on the sofa, Fuu scanning the area for signs of a third party as she went. '_Nothing here…no shoes by the door either, but still, he could have hid them in case I came around. Maybe Itsuki texted him a warning, I never thought of that! Dammit. I'll have to do a room by room sweep,_' she thought determinedly.

"You want drinks or something?" Karin asked from the door.

"Sure, anything's good," Fuu called back.

"Just tea please," Itsuki said.

Karin brought the drinks in, then sat down in a chair, after eyeing the sofa uncertainly for a second.

'_What's her problem?_' Fuu thought, '_There's plenty of room._'

"So what'd you two usually get up to here then?" she asked Karin.

"Oh, you know, animal shows and stuff," she said vaguely, looking away.

'_More and more strange behaviour…maybe this is a pre-agreed cover story!_'

Mind swirling with paranoia, she settled into her brooding mode, watching the muted TV as she thought. A little time passed before she noticed the lack of conversation between the two other girls.

'_Even stranger…what does it mean!?_' she seethed. After a while she decided that enough time had passed and decided to check for signs of "That Boy".

"Hey Karin, can I use your bathroom?" she asked.

"Sure," Karin said.

Fuu stood up and walked into the bathroom, pulling the door shut behind her. Her eyes drifted to the cupboard. '_I bet someone could fit in there._' She flung the door open and glared in furiously, only to see…nothing.

"Huh."

'_Maybe he's hiding somewhere else,_' she thought. Her eyes did notice something 'interesting' though. '_Wow, those socks look like they've been in there for months…how disgusting._' She grimaced. Maybe she should come around and teach Karin how to clean properly sometime. Yes, definitely.

Exiting the bathroom, she quietly snuck into Karin's room, eyes still scanning for suspicious signs. Seeing nothing at first glance, she checked under the bed (then wished she hadn't), behind the curtains, then approached the wardrobe. Flinging it open she glared in again, only to see nothing, again. She kicked the piles of clothes in it just to be sure, then shrugged to herself and shut the door.

'_Could I have been imagining things this whole time?_' she wondered, doubt beginning to creep into her mind.

She went through the motions in the other rooms, then headed to the kitchen, the final location he could be hiding. Frowning, she looked for hiding spots, failing to see any. Then a thought occurred to her and she opened the fridge and oven, peering in. Unsurprisingly, there was no one hiding in either the fridge or the oven either. Fuu felt her paranoid blood lust slowly start to fade.

'_…What the hell am I doing?_' she thought in bewilderment. '_I must be going crazy. What was I even going to do if I found someone anyway, beat him up?_' Not that he wouldn't deserve it, but still, that wouldn't be very heroic of her. "Haaa…"

Shaking her head in self depreciation, she headed back into the living room, failing to notice the way the other two were whispering to each other nervously before they saw her. Flopping down onto the couch, she saw that they still looked kind of nervous and came to the logical conclusion: that they were on edge because of her. '_I guess I did gatecrash their play date, and they could probably tell that I was worked up about something…whoops. Guess I should lighten the atmosphere a bit._'

"So anyway, you two must be pretty nervous about the tests huh? Not long to go now. You've been studying, right Karin?"

Karin looked perplexed by Fuu's sudden change in attitude, but decided to roll with it. "Yeah, I've been studying. I'm pretty sure I've got everything I need now, so I just need to keep reviewing it. Uh, what about you? It's your last year, you must be pretty overrun, right?"

"Ah…I don't even want to think about it. The life of a third year is tough," she sighed. "You'll understand soon."

"Onee-chan's been stuck in her room studying a lot just lately," Itsuki confirmed, thinking sadly about all the instant meals she'd had to eat as a result. Life as a domestic failure was rough.

"That so? Good luck, I guess," Karin said. "I can let you have some of my study aid supplements if you want," she offered.

"Eh…no thanks. And don't give any to Itsuki either, they sound kind of fishy. Probably not as fishy as your breath usually is though."

"Oi…"

"Since we're all gathered together maybe we should have a study group," Itsuki suggested. "I know we're not on the same level as a third year, especially me, but I'm sure we could help at least a little with the subjects you're not so good with!"

"Sure, might as well make the most of my time I guess," Fuu said. She had all the material she needed to revise with on her terminal, so it wasn't like she needed to go get anything.

The three of them spent the next hour helping each other revise, or rather Fuu and Karin spent most of the hour staring in confusion at Itsuki's horribly organised notes, trying to help the girl get things in order. Fuu noticed how well the pair were getting along and smiled to herself. '_Heh…even a useless tsundere like Karin can't resist Itsuki's overwhelming cuteness! The power of her imouto appeal can't be overestimated!_' she thought to herself smugly.

It was nice that they'd become such good friends, Yuna, Togo and Sonoko were friends with her sure, but Yuna and Togo increasingly had eyes for each other and Sonoko was Togo's old friend, so it was only natural that she'd talk to her the most. She'd been a little worried that Itsuki would feel lonely when she graduated, but as long as Karin was looking out for her there wasn't much to worry about. Not that she'd ever say that out loud. '_Maybe I should clear off and let them have fun together. I did barge in uninvited after all._'

"This was fun, but I should head back now. Dinner won't cook itself after all."

"Eh? Are you sure Onee-chan? I was planning on staying a while longer."

"You stay and have fun then, or at least try to. Nothing fun about geometry really," Fuu said, ruffling her younger siblings hair.

"Onee-chan…" Itsuki whined, flattening her hair back down.

"Hah, I bet you just can't keep up with me and decided to bow out before it became too obvious," Karin smirked.

"Sure sure, if you say so," Fuu replied airily, waving her off. They walked to the door together and after saying their goodbyes Fuu headed home, feeling better about things than she had in weeks. '_At least I know I don't have to worry about some boy now. What a relief._'

When she was half way home however, she was struck with another thing to worry about. '_Wait, where's my phone!?_' she thought, starting to panic. '_I must have left it back there…it's a while to walk back, maybe I should just text Itsuki and tell her to- wait. Damn it._' It was no good, she'd have to go and get it herself. Sighing, she started the walk back.

* * *

Karin shut the door after Fuu, then felt her body tense as she realised her situation. '_We're alone…_' She swallowed heavily. '_Okay, no problem. That was the plan all along. Just gotta take it easy. Take it easy._' She turned and faced her…her girlfriend. '_Oh boy_.' Her girlfriend looked even cuter than she usually did today…or maybe her mind was just building things up with the anticipation.

Itsuki looked at her with an uncertain smile on her face. "…Are you okay Karin-san?"

"N-No, I'm fine. …Anyway, that was weird huh? I thought she was getting ready to kick off when she arrived, but she just started acting normally all of a sudden. What was that about?"

"I have no idea. Maybe she's just stressed about her exams," Itsuki said. "Still, it wasn't so bad in the end. I kind of thought she'd decided to come so she could tell us she knew that we were dating. What a relief that she doesn't. I'll tell her in a few days, there's no point in putting it off anymore, besides, it'd be even worse if she found out for herself now."

"I guess. So…now that we're alone, do you want to, uh, do something?" Karin said, trying to sound like one of the cool people she saw on TV sometimes.

Itsuki gave an endeared smile at her girlfriends 'cool' act. "Sure, why don't you show me your new resistance bands? You sounded excited about them at school."

"Hah, I'm converting you to the fitness lifestyle huh? I knew you couldn't resist," Karin grinned, momentarily distracted from her stress.

"I guess so," Itsuki replied. She honestly wasn't that into it, but Karin was so serious about it that she was trying her best to get to grips with the basics.

"Alright then, I'll give you a crash course!"

They headed into the living room and Karin pulled out her new toys and set them up.

"You see, the best thing about these usually is their portability, but when my arm was weak it was pretty rough lifting free weights, you know? …I mean, with the risk of dropping them and all. With these I didn't have to worry about dropping them and hurting myself, but they ended up growing on me so I bought another pair for when I'm out somewhere and I get the urge to work out. These are a new model, they've got pretty good reviews. Here, look," she said, pulling them down, "It's true that you can only go so far with them, but for rehab and beginners they're the best!"

"Oh, I see. They do sound useful," Itsuki said, quite sincerely.

Still not really her thing, but more approachable than big machines and intimidating dumbbells at least.

"And now I can just take them down like this," the other girl said, "And fasten them low down, so then…I can pull upwards instead! I'm working my muscles out in a different way now, pretty cool huh!?" She pulled up with considerable force, hitching her shirt up slightly and giving Itsuki a peek at her stomach. The blonde blushed slightly and looked up, but found herself admiring Karin's toned, slightly sweaty arms instead.

'_Maybe watching her work out all afternoon wouldn't be such a bad thing after all,_' she thought.

Sadly, Karin abruptly halted her workout session. "Sorry, got carried away there," she said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head. "I guess you got the point anyways. You want to go finish up studying?"

Itsuki blinked. '_That was sudden. Maybe her arms still weak but she doesn't want to let on…_'

It probably wasn't the best idea to draw attention to it if that was the case. The other girl looked flustered, again. Really, it was an almost perpetual state with her.

"Alright, I suppose we might as well finish what we started, especially now that our exams are so close. Let's do our best," she said with a smile.

Internally, however, she wasn't particularly happy about the idea. While it probably had been a good idea at first to keep their 'dates' casual, it was starting to feel like they were just stuck as friends, never advancing in their relationship. She wondered if she should suggest going out on another, proper, date…

'_No, not today. Maybe next time, if things don't advance in the next week. And if Onee-chan doesn't get too upset about things._'

Definitely next time. She hoped that she wouldn't have to though.

* * *

Karin cursed to herself. '_I can't believe I just started working out like that after I decided I shouldn't get myself sweaty. There's no way she'd want to kiss me now. Damn it…! And why did I say we should finish studying!? This isn't romantic at all! I've completely blown it…again. I really suck at this…_'

"Karin-san? Are you having trouble with something?"

"Huh? No, just thinking. This has been a pretty shoddy excuse for a date, huh? Do you want to try going on a proper date sometime this week? I hear there's actually some good movies coming out."

Itsuki winced slightly, but then a smile lit up her face. "I'm not sure that movies mix with us at all, so let's not risk it. But you're right, it would be nice to go out on a proper date. …You said that there was a new western style restaurant nearby right? We could go there and see if it's any good."

"Oh, that place? Sure, if you want. I'll book us a table in advance, tell me what day soon okay?" Karin forced herself to act casual about the idea, but on the inside she was crying. When she'd suggested it on their first date she'd only heard of it and had had no real idea what the place was like, or, more importantly, how much the food there cost. Really, she'd only suggested it in a botched attempt to make her date think she could be classy. After the first date she'd checked the website to see what kind of prices the food went for and she'd almost had a heart attack. There was absolutely no way she could have afforded to take Itsuki there, she would have ended up having to leave without buying anything, the ultimate humiliation of the entire night. Sure spewing udon into Itsuki's face had been awful, but at least it was better than that.

'_Guess I'm going to have to dip into my savings,_' she grimaced.

"…Are you really okay? You've looked a little…off today."

"What? No, I'm fine. Fine."

"If you're sure…"

After some uneventful studying, they headed outside and started saying their goodbyes.

"Goodbye then Karin-san. I'll see when I'm free this week, though I guess a lot of it depends on how Onee-chan takes the news about us. Have fun with your bands."

"Yeah, you too. …I-I mean, bye," Karin said. '_No no no, I'm missing my chance! I have to do something!_' she thought as Itsuki started turning to leave.

"Hey Itsuki!" she squeaked.

"Hm?" Itsuki turned back, looking at her curiously.

"Uh, uh, I…I was just…" she mumbled out, failing to make eye contact. She shuffled forward slightly, but not enough to be in kissing distance. '_Come on already!_' she scolded herself. '_People kiss each other all the time, stop being such a wimp!_'

"Karin-san, are you really okay? You've looked a little sick all afternoon."

'_Aha, an opening! I can flatter her and segue into the kiss at the same time! Perfect!_'

"I-It's because…the way you look makes me feel sick!"

"…I…what did you say?"

"Yeah, really sick! Because of your clothes and hair and face and stuff!" Karin said enthusiastically, finally feeling confident about things. Itsuki was staring at her, mouth slightly open. '_She must be amazed that I've finally gotten my act together! Okay, I can do this!_' She stepped forward and grabbed Itsuki's shoulders, leaning down slightly as she did. Swallowing, she slowly shifted forwards…only to jerk away as Itsuki suddenly burst out laughing. Her face burned red. '_Oh Shinju-sama, she thinks I'm a loser…not that she's wrong, but…_'

"S-Sorry Itsuki, I didn't…"

Itsuki stopped laughing abruptly, for the most part, and tried to look guilty. "Sorry Karin-san, sorry. You didn't do anything wrong, it's just….ahem. I'm sorry. Here," she said, guiding Karin's arms back to her shoulders, "You can…carry on, if you want…" The blondes face went almost as red as Karin's as what was happening really hit her. She swallowed, closed her eyes and waited.

Karin looked down at her expectant face nervously. '_She's really pretty…I can't believe she actually agreed to go out with me. I'd better not make her regret it._'

She tightened her grip on Itsuki's shoulders lightly and leaned down until their lips were less than an inch apart. Itsuki's shallow breathes puffed against her face and she vaguely noticed that the blonde had used breath freshener as well. '_I wonder if she's been waiting for this?_' Karin thought. Her body involuntarily gave a small shiver, then she closed her eyes, gently pressed their lips together and held still. Itsuki leaned into the kiss, pressing her lips harder against Karin's, and wrapped her arms around Karin's waist. After what felt like a very long time Karin pulled away, eyes still closed and lips still slightly parted. They opened their eyes and looked at each other, blushing heavily.

"…W-Was it," she swallowed involuntarily. "Was it good?" she got out, voice surprisingly hoarse even to her own ears.

Itsuki nodded and glanced away, too embarrassed to meet her eyes.

"Y-Yes, it was good." Her voice was even quieter than usual.

The pair stood there uncertainly.

"So-"

"I should-"

They looked at each other in surprise, then burst into giggles. "What were you going to say?" Itsuki asked, still smiling widely.

"Ahem, just…thanks for giving me so many chances. I'm really glad we're together."

"Me too. You should really stop beating yourself up about that you know? Looking back on it, it was actually kind of funny. I should head back now though, Onee-chan's so busy just lately that I want to help her make dinner more often…although she keeps chasing out of the kitchen when I try to help for some reason," Itsuki said, wondering why her sister would turn down free labour. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Bye," she said, blushing again despite her best attempts not too.

"Bye Itsuki," Karin said, waving after her. Once she was out of sight, Karin pumped her arm in victory, jumping on the spot slightly before she caught herself. A huge grin spread over her face. '_I did it! I actually did it!_' It was almost unbelievable. Even before she'd wrote that letter she hadn't really thought she had a chance, but now…now it looked like things were heading for the long-term. '_I should give her some flowers next time, just to keep up the momentum,_' she thought.

Still grinning, she headed back inside and went to work out. She had a lot of excitement to burn off after all.


End file.
